Rescuing Skulduggery
by FrozenDemigoddess13
Summary: Tanith and Valkyrie head off to rescue their skeleton friend for what feels like the millionth time. Set in Mortal Coil. This summary sucks so read the start of the first chapter :) Rating might change later on but I don't know yet so we'll see.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi :) This chapter is kinda short, but I promise you the next one will be longer. This story is set in Mortal Coil, in a random situation where Skulduggery might have gotten captured and the Remnants were behind it. So anyway enjoy! (hopefully)**

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"Valkyrie."

Valkyrie opened her eyes to find Tanith standing over her, brow furrowed. "Val, we need to go. Now."

"How did you get in here?" Sleepily Valkyrie rubbed her eyes and stood up. She slipped on her Necromancer ring and sighed. Another night of sleep disturbed. She supposed it was kind of what she had signed up for. "Where's Skulduggery?"

"About that…"

"Don't tell me. We need to rescue him. Again."

"Oh, don't be so pessimistic all the time. Rescuing Skulduggery is fun! We get to fight monsters, and the like. We might even get to see Darquesse on one of these little adventures!" Tanith smiled, as if she couldn't wait to best the evil Darquesse. (**A/N: hahaha that rhymed :D)**

The thought turned Valkyrie's blood cold. "No, I hope not. We don't want to bump into her." Because she's me, and I don't want to be Darquesse and end the world, she thought. "Anyway, let's go." She turned and released her reflection from the mirror, as Tanith waited impatiently.

The reflection watched her with a slightly bored expression. "This late?" it asked her.

"Yeah. You know the drill. Bye." She turned to find that Tanith had already left. So Valkyrie waved to the reflection and vaulted out the window.

She pushed at the air and came down slowly, as Tanith got onto her motorbike and let Valkyrie sit behind her. "Where exactly are we going?" Valkyrie asked as Tanith started the bike and zoomed down the mostly empty street. There was only one little old woman walking, and she didn't even look at them. It was still dark out, and long before dawn.

"Now, we aren't going anywhere exciting yet. Where we are going is the Bespoke place. Ghastly still hasn't told me anything except the point of our rescue mission, really. Fletcher isn't going to be there either-just us."

Valkyrie sighed at the thought that Fletcher wasn't going to be there-extra backup was always handy-and after deciding that Tanith knew nothing and it would be no use questioning her further, decided to observe her surroundings, which were admittedly flying by at an alarmingly fast rate. It was only a few minutes before they arrived at Bespoke Tailor's, and then Tanith parked the motorbike outside and got off with Valkyrie.

Ghastly opened the door, his face serious. "Come in. I have a lot to tell you and little time to say it in." He retreated inside, and Valkyrie followed with Tanith at her heels. Ghastly sat down and so did the two women. He seemed worried and jittery, which only increased Valkyrie's impression that something was horribly wrong. As usual.

"Valkyrie, I don't know if you can get to Skulduggery now. He's being heavily guarded in a place where the Remnants are gathering. I've talked to a lot of people who think Darquesse will start her reign of terror there. Gordon and Fletcher are somewhere in America, and they aren't up to the job of teleporting all the Remnants yet. The Sanctuary is in so much upheaval that they'll be of no help at all. I'm busy as it is, and since there aren't any decent sorcerers around who aren't possessed or in hiding…you and Tanith would have to go get him yourselves."

Valkyrie rubbed her eyes with the heel of her hand and tried to process the truckload of information Ghastly had just dumped on her. Then something occurred to her. "Who got Skulduggery? When did they do it? And how? Where is he, anyway?"

Ghastly got up and began to pace around the room. "I don't know who got him or how they did it. I do know that it was less than an hour ago. Skulduggery called and told me to get you two here as soon as possible. He sounded frantic. Not a lot of things can make him frantic. So I got Tanith to get you, putting him on hold. When I resumed the call…" Ghastly swallowed, the old scars rippling. "He was gone."

Valkyrie realized she was holding her breath and quickly let it out. "Okay, well, what do you say, Tanith?" she asked. She wouldn't dare do this without her best friend and 'sister' by her side, but she wouldn't force her into it either.

Tanith nodded slowly. "We've fought gods and won. We're both pretty powerful, too." She smirked. "And if we can rescue that skeleton _again_, we should be able to never let him live it down.

Valkyrie laughed. "I like that idea." She turned to Ghastly. "We'll do it."


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi everyone :) I just finished Mortal Coil and realized Tanith is now in fact possessed by a Remnant, so that's all this out the window. Oh well. Anyway, let's pretend that this takes place somewhere in the middle. LONG before Tanith goes all Remnant, before Kenspeckle dies, before any major deaths or possessions, really. Plus, does Valkyrie end up with a little sister named Alice? Because that name keeps popping up on this site…anyway, enough of me rambling. This is kind of a filler chapter, but enjoy! **

Ghastly nodded. "Then there's a couple things I'd like to do for you before you leave. Tanith, I made you some clothes that might at least prolong your life." He got up and headed off to the back of the room, and came back a few seconds later with a long brown coat, with a hood and beige sleeves. "I made it for you because you're off on adventures half the time and you must come close to dying a lot. This comes with boots, by the way."

Tanith was speechless, and Valkyrie laughed at the look on her face. "Oh, Tanith, be thankful. Ghastly must've put a lot of work into this, you know."

Ghastly returned for the second time with a pair of glossy black boots just like Valkyrie's (A/N: I forgot what colour they are, so whatever). "Here, Tanith," he said, uncharacteristically shy.

"Thanks," Tanith said, then blushed. "Can I go change?"

"You can go into the back room."

"Thanks again." Tanith disappeared, leaving Ghastly and Valkyrie sitting there.

At last Ghastly said, "So you plan to go through with this?"

Valkyrie huffed. "Yeah, if I knew where Skulduggery even is."

Ghastly pulled out his phone and pressed a couple buttons. Suddenly a strange look came over his ravaged face. "Hmm. That's odd." He looked up at Valkyrie. "There's a voicemail from Skulduggery! He must have woken me with his call the second time. Let's have a listen. Maybe this can help you and Tanith."

He pressed something else, and Skulduggery's panicked voice filled the room.

"Ghastly, listen," he barked immediately. "I'm in serious danger. I think I have to leave my house. I may have angered a couple Remnants, and they forgive about as easily as I used to-they don't." Skulduggery chuckled once before continuing. "The point is, I need you to get Tanith and Valkyrie to your place. Then they can-oh, damn." Valkyrie heard a _whoosh_, and then there was a noise like Skulduggery dropping the phone. "Oh, damn," he said again, but more distantly. The sounds of a fierce battle ensued, with the constant bangs of a gun being fired and the clicks of flames being conjured as the Remnants attacked him.

Abruptly the voicemail disconnected, and Tanith returned. "Val? What's wrong? Is it Skulduggery?"

Valkyrie turned to face her friend. She looked stunning in her new outfit, but there were more pressing matters to consider. "Tanith, Remnants attacked Skulduggery in his house. Listen…" She replayed the voicemail for her friend as she and Ghastly listened for the second time.

By the time it was finished, Tanith was rather pale and looked anxious. "That seems like a lot of Remnants," she said thoughtfully. "If they managed to overwhelm Skulduggery and take him wherever…" She didn't need to finish. That meant a whole lot of Remnants that Valkyrie didn't really feel up to fighting this late. But if it meant rescuing Skulduggery, then what _wouldn't _she do? She owed him, after all, for a lot of things she didn't particularly feel like having to remember now.

Shaking herself out of her gloom, Valkyrie broke the tense silence. "I think we should go to the place where the most Remnants are gathered. Isn't it somewhere near Roarhaven?"

Tanith nodded. "They seem to be particularly interested in that area, especially a certain cave near the new Sanctuary. I wonder if they believe what some mages do, that their saviour Darquesse is actually going to show her nonexistent face." She laughed. "I bet that the Sensitives are lying about seeing her. They just really, really want the end of the world to come around, and by a nice-looking girl who kind of resembles Valkyrie."

Valkyrie looked up, shocked. "She looks like me?" What if other people made the connection between her and Darquesse?

Tanith nodded again. "Yep. A whole awful lot like you. Like I said, those Sensitives are just trying to have a laugh. A terribly annoying laugh."

Ghastly sighed. "I appreciate your bravery and optimism, Tanith, but I'm sure the Sensitives really are seeing Darquesse. My mother was one of the first to have that vision, after all, and I trust that she truly did see her."

Tanith looked disappointed. "So much for my confidence, my bravery, and my happiness. Also a huge chunk of my hope." Then she turned to Valkyrie. "Val, I really think we should be going. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can bust Skulduggery out and kick the living daylights out of some lucky Remnants."

Valkyrie had to laugh. "Okay, okay, Tanith." Then she said warmly, "Thanks for everything, Ghastly. We'll have Skulduggery out and about in no time."

"I hope so, Valkyrie. Good luck." Ghastly got up and opened the door for her and Tanith. "If you need emergency backup, I'll try to come. Just let me know where you are once you find out where they're holding Skulduggery, and I promise you I'll make my best effort to get there and help you if you need it."

"OK, I hope we won't need the backup though. Thanks anyways." Tanith got onto her motorbike and waited for Valkyrie as she hugged Ghastly. When she was on they sped off into the night.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi everyone again! Shoutout to NarahSelson because she is awesome! And yeah that's about it. **

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"Tanith?" Valkyrie asked.

"Yeah?" Tanith swerved to avoid two laughing boys who ran across the street.

"How long till we get there?"

"Ten minutes, if we don't run into anything." Tanith screeched to a halt as a shiny red car turned onto the main road from a side alley. "Is it just me, or is it a bit too busy for midnight on a weekday?"

"It's not just you." Valkyrie strained to catch a glimpse of the red car driver's face-see if his lips were black-but the car was too fast and it was too dark for her to see properly. "Tanith, what if all these people are Remnants?"

"I wouldn't doubt it. They might even lead us to their hideout." Tanith growled low under her throat as yet another person crossed the street. With a jolt, Valkyrie recognized the hunched old woman from earlier. She gave the two women a wide grin, and it was only then that Valkyrie saw that her lips, stretched wide in their gruesome smile, were dark black.

Tanith growled again and turned the bike around. There were more people waiting there-the boys and the car driver among them. More people stepped out of the shadows, each letting black veins show on their neck as well as their lips. Valkyrie suddenly felt very tired, seeing as it was still a while before dawn, but she said nothing. What kind of coward charged into a fight and said they were tired? Not a respectable Elemental slash Necromancer.

Quickly Tanith parked the motorbike by the sidewalk and drew her sword, glinting in the dim light. Valkyrie still felt tired, but held out her ring, ready to fight. She hoped it would be enough.

"You are quite brave, little one. Join us and we will spare you. We all know-"

Valkyrie cut the old woman off before she could reveal her secret. "I'll never join you. Or rule you," she added as an afterthought.

"We gave you a chance. You're too late." The old woman stepped forward and made to punch Valkyrie in the face, but she flicked her hand and shadows wrapped around the woman's neck. Instantly she suffocated, and the Remnant that had possessed her flew off into the night.

The other people were not so easily bested. The two boys advanced on Tanith, and she slashed at them with her sword. Normal teens would have been hit, but the Remnants were strong and smart. They simply stepped away, but Tanith didn't lose her balance-being too good for that.

A hiss caused Valkyrie to turn around to be met with the sight of an old man with a potbelly approaching. She wondered fleetingly why the only people the Remnants possessed were either old or young, and then decided to think about it later as the man lunged for her throat. Valkyrie pushed at the air and sent shadows to push him faster toward the pavement, and he fell unconscious with a sickening thud. She had no time to feel anything, for there were more hapless citizens to fight. Hopefully she could merely force the Remnants out, as she had with the old woman.

The fights were tedious, and even more so because of the fact that Valkyrie wanted to go to sleep very badly. By the time she had forced out the last Remnant, she felt like she could fall down and sleep on the cold ground right there. Unfortunately, she still had to help Tanith rescue Skulduggery, but by then she was sure she would be no help at all.

"Val. Val, stay on your feet. We have to keep going." Tanith sheathed her sword and steadied her when she felt like she was going to fall down, she was so tired. "Valkyrie Cain, listen to me. We have to keep going," she repeated. Valkyrie staggered, then regained her balance and leaned against a wall-just in case. With a quick glance at the bodies strewn on the street, Tanith took out her cell phone and dialed Ghastly's number.

"Ghastly, we're almost there. Can you come?" Valkyrie mustered all the strength she possessed and turned her head. Tanith had cocked her head and was listening. "Oh, I see," she said, although from the look on her face it was clear she didn't. "Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I will," she said slowly. Ghastly fired a question Valkyrie couldn't hear at her. Tanith sighed. "Half an hour? We might need your help at any time. Please be ready."

Some corner of her mind wondered why she was so tired. Was there a reason? There must be…but she was so tired she slipped onto the ground and fell into a deep sleep without even realizing that she already knew the answer.

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**Drama…why is Val so tired? We will find out in Chapter 4! Can I have 5 reviews? I know you guys can do it! And more follows would be awesome too, but it's totally cool if you don't. So see ya, peeps! ~FrozenDemigoddess13**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey y'all...so I got impatient and decided to post this anyway. I know that that means I'm not even following my own rule, but then if you're reading this, you want to read it, so you're not complaining, right? Okay, anyway, here you guys go! (Tell me if anyone's acting OOC [out of character, but you knew that] :D**

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**V**alkyrie woke up to find herself surrounded by Ghastly, China and Tanith. Ghastly looked relieved. "Oh good, you're awake," he said. "The Remnants are likely going to alert their friends. If you don't go now you might never be able to."

Valkyrie felt a twinge of annoyance. Was that really all she was wanted for? But all she said was, "Okay, we'll go."

"Thank you, Valkyrie, Tanith. You don't know how much this means to me."

"Or do we," Tanith muttered, then straightened. "Right, Val, we had better get moving if we wanna get Skulduggery-what Ghastly said."

"Okay," Valkyrie said, standing up. "Why was I out, anyway?"

"We don't know. I think it might have to do with the Remnants you fought." China sighed. "I wasn't sure you'd wake up. I...well, it's not important." China gestured to a rune on the ground by her foot.

Valkyrie, still feeling drained, stretched and headed for Tanith's bike. "Bye," she called over her shoulder. "And thanks."

"No problem," Ghastly called as Tanith climbed back onto the bike and they sped off. Idly Valkyrie wondered what time it was, and if her parents had heard the noise she'd made leaving. To her surprise, Valkyrie found that she didn't care. Damn the whole normal life thing.

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They drove for a little while, and Valkyrie spotted a couple of inconspicious cars parked at the entrance to a yawning cave.

"Those cars shouldn't be there. It's too late to park cars here. I definitely think this is where the Remnants are holding Skulduggery." Tanith nodded her approval and drove the motorbike closer, parking it across the street. "How did this get here, anyway?" Valkyrie asked. "Won't a mortal have seen it?" She glanced briefly at the signs by the front. They read: DANGER. UNSAFE.  
"Cloaking sphere, probably," Tanith answered. She drew her sword and walked up to the cave's entrance, Valkyrie by her side.  
The ring on her finger turned ice cold as it did only in the face of death. "There're dead people in there," Valkyrie whispered. Tanith nodded again and edged closer. Together the two women stepped inside.  
Lights turned on, illuminating huge stone stairs at their feet. A dead man lay beside Valkyrie, who jumped. The source of her ring's piercing cold.  
"I think the Remnant did this," Tanith whispered. "Stay close." They stepped onto the first step, and they braced themselves for something to happen.  
Nothing did.  
Relieved, the pair kept walking.

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It wasn't long before they reached the bottom of the stairs, and more lights turned on. Three hallways lay in front of them-one to the left, one to the right and one in front of them. Valkyrie tried to read the air, although she wasn't too good at it yet, and discovered an odd disturbance. The air hadn't passed the disturber as it usually did. Rather, it had passed through it. "Skulduggery went here," Valkyrie announced, pointing to the middle tunnel.  
"Sounds good." Tanith clenched her sword handle tighter and walked through the tunnel. As they did, they heard rustling noises from the end. It sounded like... "Hollow Men?" Tanith echoed her thoughts, staring into the darkness. Valkyrie held out her ring hand as a massive horde of Hollow Men stomped out.  
"Val! On your left!" Valkyrie whirled around as a Hollow Man reached out a clunky arm to hit her. She flicked her hand, and shadows whipped out into his chest. The Hollow Man staggered, foul green gas spurting out. It collapsed in papery remains as Valkyrie kept lashing shadows out at the Hollow Men, trying to breathe through her mouth due to the awful smells.  
"Tanith!" Valkyrie screeched, as she tried to find her friend in the midst of the gases and Hollow Men. Absently, she suffocated the nearest Hollow Man, and then spotted Tanith at the end of the hallway, by a thick wood door. "That's 'The Girl from Ipanema'. That's him," Tanith called to her. (A/N: Anyone remember Ghastly saying this before? xD)  
"What?" Valkyrie spun back around to face what must be the millionth Hollow Man, easily shattering it before turning back to Tanith. With a careful flick, she sent shadows spinning into the corners of the room, and more in every direction. Satisfied that there were no more enemies, Valkyrie ran over to Tanith.  
"He's whistling that stupid song," Tanith whispered to her. Valkyrie sighed, then frowned. Hadn't she rescued him whistling that song once? Didn't Tanith remember?  
Apparently Tanith didn't, so Valkyrie whispered quickly, "Let's break in." Tanith nodded and spun her hand on the lock expertly. It clicked, and the door unlocked.


	5. Chapter 5

Hey** everyone! This is the last chapter, so hope you liked it. Anyway, yeah, here it is! **

**(P.S: I know it's short, and all of the chapters have been short, but yeah. :( )**

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Skulduggery was sitting on a chair in the middle of the room, head bowed. He was tied to the chair, and shining metal handcuffs were around his arm bones. He looked up. "Well, hello," he said. Then he smiled, or would've smiled if he had a mouth to smile with. "You rescued me," he added dryly. "Congratulations."

Valkyrie sighed. "Well, of course we did!" Then she glanced behind her, at the dark hallway still covered with the remains of Hollow Men. "Whoever got you must've noticed something by now. We have to go."

Skulduggery glanced behind her as well. "I see. Oh, and by the way, thank you. However did you find me?"

"The song you were whistling. I really hate it. Let's get out of here!" Tanith called. She was already halfway down the hallway. Valkyrie gave her skeleton friend an apologetic look and ran to catch up with Tanith.

"Wait up!" she cried loudly, then realized where she was and calmed down. "Okay, sorry. Wait up, Tanith," she whisper-yelled.

Tanith snorted, but merely replied, "Hurry up."

Skulduggery caught up. "And for the record, I owe you."

Valkyrie grinned. "Partners do what partners do." She ran faster, willing her muscles to compensate. They groaned in protest, but then shadows lifted her into the air. They moved like a conveyor belt, and she shot past Tanith. More shadows pried the door open for her, and she sped into the night.


End file.
